Nato-Pak resume cooperation tentatively

Pakistan has resumed some cooperation with US-led forces in Afghanistan following Nato strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers by working with the coalition to prevent another cross-border incident from escalating, US spokesperson Navy Lt Cmdr Brian Badura said.

Pakistan has resumed some cooperation with US-led forces in Afghanistan following Nato strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers by working with the coalition to prevent another cross-border incident from escalating, US spokesperson Navy Lt Cmdr Brian Badura said.

The weekend airstrikes have severely strained the already troubled relationship between Pakistan and the US, jeopardising Washington’s hopes of enlisting Islamabad’s support in winding down the Afghan war.

Pakistan is still outraged by the soldiers’ deaths and has retaliated by closing its Afghan border crossings to Nato supplies, demanding the US vacate an air base used by American drones and boycotting an international conference aimed at stabilising Afghanistan.

German Brig General Carsten Jacobson, a Nato spokesman in Kabul, expressed hope on Thursday that Pakistan’s cooperation in resolving the incident signalled the two sides could recover from the recent tragedy.

“We are continuing operations and it is of great importance that the incidents of Saturday, as tragic as they were, do not disrupt our capability to operate in the border area and cooperate with the Pakistani side,” said Jacobson.